News, notes, and anecdotes on the Fort Wayne TinCaps

TinCaps on Topps, Wi-Fi For All, Podcast

Thursday was the series opener for Fort Wayne against the Kane County Cougars, and the home nine scampered away with an 8-5 victory. The TinCaps trailed 3-1 after three innings, but clawed back to take a 5-4 lead at the end of six.

The eight inning was the turning point, as the Cougars erupted for four runs against the Fort Wayne bullpen.

Hear all of the highlights (and a little George Costanza) in today’s TinCaps Report Podcast:

This tweet from Nando Di Fino, a fantasy sports writer for CBS Sports, made me chuckle when I saw it yesterday. He’s probably on to something, seeing as Jose Valentin played for the White Sox in 2001, Jacque Jones for the Twins, and Willie Blair was in his final year with the Tigers.

It would be quite the painstaking exercise to check every staff in the minor and major leagues, but this does make you appreciate the immense ability and knowledge that resides in the TinCaps clubhouse. There are plenty of managers and coaches who did not make it to the big leagues, which takes nothing away from their ability to be a coach–let’s be clear on that–but to have three former players who spent a significant amount of time in the big leagues is a great asset for this ballclub.

SHOULD WI-FI BE FREE?

Now that the season is two weeks in and the team is bouncing from city to city, lots of travel-related thoughts come to mind. Did I bring my pillow for the bus? (Nope, forgot it back in Fort Wayne. Doh!) Do I have snacks for the bus? (Of course). Do I have to pay for wireless at the hotel? (Thank goodness, no.)

“A lot of hotels lived well off telephone income,” says Kurt Ritter, president & CEO of Rezidor Hotel Group. “Telephone income was a big part of — I don’t want to say cheating — but overcharging the customer.

“Everyone wants to make money, but I think you should make it in a reasonable way and internet, it’s not a good idea to charge. It’s like the air you breathe, the water you turn on — it should be for free.”‘

Many folks might argue with the attitude that it should be like air and water (which, if it should be free, why do I get a bill at the end of every month?), but for people who are constantly in need of an internet connection, I can understand that viewpoint.

“For hotel guests there’s the added frustration of inconsistency. Some hotels charge for Wi-Fi per device, others offer it free only to loyalty members; some chain hotels offer free Wi-Fi at their budget brands but charge for it at their luxury ones; sometimes Wi-Fi is free in the lobby. With no set rules, hotels charge as much or as little as they like.

Joe Germanotta, chief executive of GuestWi-Fi, Wi-Fi provider to hotels such as Crowne Plaza and the Intercontinental Hotel Group, doesn’t see a problem with Wi-Fi rates.

“When you have to pay for it as an amenity they guarantee you the reliability and speed and the security,” he says. “And it’s becoming a very expensive proposition for the hotel to maintain these services, so it makes sense that they have to charge for it.”‘

I found this winter, as I traveled with the basketball team I worked with as the radio guy, that if you pay for wireless at a hotel, it does not guarantee that it’s a good connection. The basic logic is the more expensive the hotel, the higher the likelihood you will end up facing a charge for wireless. I do think that what Ritter says will become the reality, though. Sooner or later, wi-fi will be free all over.

MUSICAL GUEST

I like to listen to music as I fill out my scorebook each afternoon, and this song came on Pandora yesterday. I then listened to it about five more times. I think the message is happy, and it’s a nice tune. So, Ray LaMontagne, take it away!

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